According to a new report from Canada, a boy's vision was gradually lost or even nearly lost due to a severe partial eclipse. According to the case report published in JAMA Pediatrics magazine, the parents of the 11-year-old boy took him to the hospital for examination after his eyesight gradually deteriorated for 8 months.

When the doctor and the author of the case report, Dr. Eyal Cohen, examined the boy, he found that his vision was seriously damaged: the child could only see the hand movements within 30 cm of his eyes. The outer layer of the boy's eyes is also seriously dry. This severe drying led to the accumulation of keratinization in the cornea (the transparent outer covering of the eye), forming dry spots of the conjunctiva. It is reported that the boy has multiple food allergies and eczema. The boy's diet was limited to potatoes, pork, mutton, apples, cucumbers, and oatmeal because he was worried that some foods might cause an outbreak of eczema.

What do these foods have in common? That is, none of them is a high-quality source of vitamin A. In fact, when the doctor measured the content of vitamin A in the boy's blood, he was found to have a vitamin A deficiency. The blood vitamin A level of boys is 14.3 micrograms/deciliter (ug/dL). It is reported that the range of blood vitamin A in normal people is 25.8 to 48.7 μ g/dl. The boy has a very serious deficiency. Dr. Eyal Cohen pointed out: "Vitamin A deficiency is very common in the poorer regions of the world, which is the main cause of blindness. But it is rare in developed regions. However, in this case, report, like this boy, people whose diet remains unchanged still face a higher risk of vitamin A deficiency and other nutritional deficiencies."

According to the case report, vitamin A is essential for vision because it helps some cells in the eye function normally. Dr. Eyal Cohen said that insufficient vitamins can cause retinal abnormalities. The photoreceptor cells in the retina behind the eyes are the key areas to form light perception. In order to treat the boy's vitamin deficiency, he gave the boy an intravenous injection of 200000 units of vitamin A every day for two days, followed by another intravenous injection two weeks later. The normal vitamin A dose for an 11-year-old boy should be 2000 units per day.

It is reported that the boy's eyes improved significantly after six weeks. Dr. Eyal Cohen said that the child's vision has also been greatly improved, and the vision of both eyes has reached 20/800. Cohen pointed out that this level of visual impairment may not be completely corrected by wearing glasses. According to the American Blind Foundation, vision above 20/200 is almost equal to blindness. It is reported that in some cases, the visual loss associated with vitamin A deficiency can be reversed, but for this boy, a certain degree of visual loss may be permanent. The boy's parents are taking measures to ensure that he gets enough vitamin A every day. The doctor's opinion is that high-quality sources of vitamin A include carrots, sweet potatoes, green leafy vegetables, and fish.